Money talks for Setanta

The Setanta Cup is the richest competition in Irish football but money cant paper over the north-south divide. By Paul Rowan

ALL THE signs are that the Setanta Cup final will get the full house it deserves next Saturday evening, with Cork City and Drogheda United both requesting bigger ticket allocations after each receiving an initial batch of 3,500.

Much has been made of the potential knock-on effect at Tolka Park from Munster’s Heineken Cup game with Leinster the following day, but in reality there is little crossover between the two tribes beyond the fact that George O’Callaghan is a cousin of Donncha’s and that both share the wacky streak which runs through that particular Cork clan.

While it might be stretching it to say that the competition has caught the imagination of the Irish footballing public, the bold approach of its backers has been recognised by media and fans alike. When Setanta first put up prize money of €150,000 for the winners last year, it amounted to nearly eight times